The southern supermarket chain Publix is on the defensive against boycott demands from shoppers who are angry that an heiress to the Florida-based business donated $ 300,000 to the January 6 rally in Washington, DC, which it occurred before the deadly riot on Capitol Hill.
Publix tried to put distance between the company and Julie Jenkins Fancelli, a mega donor Donald Trump who is one of the seven children of the late founder George W. Jenkins. The company aimed to get out of the controversy by announcing that the heiress “is not an employee” and “is not involved in our business operations, nor does she represent the company in any way”. The return of the donation has sparked broader criticism of corporate money in politics and has reminded business owners of the power behind social media-inspired boycott movements.
Publix also described the attacks on the Capitol as a “national tragedy”, before refusing to comment further on Fancelli’s donation to the organizers with the help of right-wing conspiracy theorist Alex Jones.
But many shoppers in the seven southern states where Publix stores are located have called for a boycott and said they will no longer sponsor the chain that reported $ 38.1 billion in retail sales in 2019. Critics on social media accused Publix of “finance the insurrection” and also caused the vaccination COVID-19 worries because the company is the only distributor of the vaccine in the entire state.
“I was an avid buyer of Publix, no more. The Publix heiress financed $ 300,000 for the DC rally on January 6. Just like shouting fire in a crowded theater for your own enjoyment, it’s not cool; nor is promoting the stand up and fight, trial for fighting inflammatory speech #BOYCOTTPUBLIX, “tweeted political author Christopher Zullo.
“I used to spend more than $ 200 a week. Publix is not getting any more money from me. If we all #BOYCOTTPUBLIX they’ll feel it, ”tweeted an angry former Publix buyer.
Many seemingly morally conflicting Publix shoppers expressed anguish over their decision to boycott the store, with countless Florida residents, like Yarnista Mary, tweeting why they wouldn’t spend more money there: “This hurts, but I’m a huge advocate of having my money speaks for me. “
Calls to boycott Publix were combined with news and memes that revolved around Publix’s years of donations to Republican candidates, including a $ 100,000 contribution in December just before Republican Party Governor Ron DeSantis became the sole distributor of company’s vaccines in Florida.
This is not the first time that Publix has been the target of a boycott of political donations. A 2018 #BoycottPublix campaign for the 2018 Memorial Day weekend was waged on social media by advocacy groups and Florida residents who were irritated by a $ 670,000 donation to government candidate Adam Putnam. Before the Republican Party candidate lost to current Governor DeSantis in the primaries, Putnam was ridiculed for describing himself as “a proud traitor to the NRA” after the school shooting in Parkland, Florida, in February of that year.
Last month, Publix made a six-figure contribution to DeSantis and critics said it was only after this change that the supermarket chain became the only retail location in Florida to distribute the vaccine.
Some Publix buyers and even people who claim to be current employees have asked people who are angry about Fancelli’s donation to realize that it is not the rich heiress who will be hurt by the loss. Many supporters of Publix have noted that it is one of the largest “employee-owned” companies in the country.
“If you boycott Publix, I doubt that the daughters of George Jenkins really feel any significant effect on their bank accounts with the boycott. And they donated the money to Trump, not Publix. The people who will feel the effect are the cashiers, workers of deli, truck drivers, butchers and bakers with whom you interact every day, “wrote Jessica Nederveld Weeks in a Sunday post on Facebook.
Newsweek contacted Publix and several Florida stores for additional comments and reaction on Sunday afternoon.
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